The invention relates to administering guava extract.
The guava plant, psidium guajava L., has been used as a source of nutrition by many cultures; its fruit is eaten as is, made into juices and jellies, and used in other food products. Parts of the guava plant have been used by various cultures to treat diarrhea and sore gums. The guava plant has also been studied to ascertain its effects on various conditions of the human body including diabetes and obesity.
Human beings have been consuming alcohol, in the form of ethanol, for centuries. After alcohol is ingested it is absorbed from the stomach and upper gastrointestinal tract. Alcohol that a person drinks shows up in the person's breath because it is absorbed from the mouth, throat, stomach and intestines into the bloodstream. Alcohol is not chemically changed while in the bloodstream. As the blood passes through the lungs, some of the alcohol moves across the membranes of the lung's air sacs (alveoli) into the air, because alcohol is volatile. The concentration of the alcohol in the alveolar air is related to the concentration of the alcohol in the blood. By analyzing the breath of an individual, one can determine the level of alcohol in the individual. Although alcohol is found in human breath whether or not an individual has been consuming it, in most circumstances the only possible way to increase the level of alcohol in the body to a point sufficient to cause behavioral impairment is to ingest alcohol.
Blood Alcohol Content, which is also referred to as Blood Alcohol Concentration, (both of which are referred to as “BAC”) can be determined by breath analysis for the volatile organic compound ethanol. BAC is a measure of the mass of alcohol (i.e., ethanol) in a given volume of blood and is reported in milligrams (mg) ethanol per 100 milliliters (mL) blood. A BAC measurement of 0.04%, for example, translates to a concentration of 40 mg of alcohol in 100 mL of blood. Breath analysis alcohol content (BrAC) in the United States is specified as BAC/2100. At 34° C. (i.e., 93° F.) ethanol is in equilibrium in blood at a ratio of roughly 2100:1 based on the distribution of ethanol in equilibrium with the blood in the deep part of the lungs. In other words, 2100 ml of air in the deep parts of the lungs contain the same amount of ethanol that is present in 1 ml of blood. Because the ethanol concentration in the breath is related to that in the blood, the BAC can be calculated from the breath alcohol measurement. The ratio of breath alcohol to blood alcohol is 2,100:1. This means that 2,100 milliliters (ml) of alveolar air will contain the same amount of alcohol as 1 ml of blood.
Consuming too much alcohol can cause a variety of negative effects in the body including impairing motor skills and reaction times. When people who have consumed too much alcohol operate a motor vehicle, they can pose a danger to themselves and other motorists. As a result, legal standards for permissible blood alcohol content for operating a motor vehicle have been developed. For many years, the legal standard for permissible blood alcohol content across the United States was a BAC measurement of 0.10%, but many states have now adopted the 0.08% standard. The federal government has pushed states to lower the legal limit. The American Medical Association takes the position that a person can become impaired when the blood alcohol level hits 0.05%.
Consuming too much alcohol can also result in a hangover, which is often accompanied by a variety of symptoms including at least one of headache, nausea, lack of appetite, shakiness, fatigue, dry mouth, an overall feeling of being unwell, and decreased occupational, cognitive, or visual-spatial skill performance. The negative effects of alcohol consumption are due in large part to the toxic effects of acetaldehyde. Although a portion of the alcohol is eliminated in urine and breath, a majority of the alcohol is oxidized, primarily in the liver. The liver converts ethanol to acetaldehyde by alcohol dehydrogenases. Acetaldehyde is processed by the liver at a fixed rate, regardless of how much alcohol is in the bloodstream. Acetaldehyde is then oxidized to acetic acid by acetaldehyde dehydrogenases, which is rapidly metabolized to carbon dioxide and water.
Acetaldehyde provokes disturbances in bodily processes by, for example, forming adducts with hemoglobin and proteins of plasma of the brain and other organs, and inhibiting the transfer of reducing agents along the mitochondrial respiratory chain. Acetaldehyde also accumulates in the cerebellum causing headache by contracting cerebral blood vessels thereby decreasing blood flow resulting in pain.